Audio 3:24
Wallabies stood down and disciplined over mid-week bender

Lucy CarterUpdated
Tue 19 Nov 2013, 10:37 AM AEDT

Six Wallabies have been stood down for one test and another nine sanctioned after a night of excessive drinking in Dublin, just days before a crucial test match against Ireland. It's raised questions again about the team culture and whether paid professional athletes should be allowed to drink at all before representing their country.

Transcript

TONY EASTLEY: Just days after posting a convincing win against Ireland as part of their Spring Tour of the UK, the Wallabies Rugby Union squad has blotted its copybook by yet another off-field incident.

Six players have been stood down for one match, and another nine have been sanctioned for staying out late and drinking in Dublin last week in the days before Saturday's crucial game.

None of the players got into any trouble with the law while they were out drinking, however Wallabies coach Ewan McKenzie says he's taking a hardline approach with the squad which has struggled with discipline.

Lucy Carter reports.

LUCY CARTER: When taking over from Robbie Deans in July, Wallabies coach Ewan McKenzie made it clear he would not be tolerating poor off-field behaviour.

Speaking last night in Ireland he showed he wasn't kidding.

EWAN MCKENZIE: That's the sanction and they've got to deal with that. When you get picked to wear the Wallaby jersey and when you're part of the team, you've actually chosen as your vocation, you're getting paid handsomely for it. Your contract says you're going to do this. There's a whole bunch of reasons why you have to do the right thing at the right time. It's as simple as that.

LUCY CARTER: Adam Ashley-Cooper, Tatafu Polota-Nau, Benn Robinson, Nick Cummins and Liam Gill will not be playing against Scotland this weekend at Murrayfield.

Paddy Ryan has also been banned for one game, but will serve that against Wales the following week, simply because the Wallabies are now short of players in his position.

Ewan McKenzie says nine other players have been given written or verbal warnings.

EWAN MCKENZIE: Hasn't helped us at all. Now that's going to be a challenge but, on the upside, the league guys have made good decisions last week and, out of those good decisions some rewards will come. So you have to look at these things from both sides of the ledger. Those guys that did the right thing, there will be guys who are going to benefit from that. So they'll get an opportunity. So that's what sport's about.

LUCY CARTER: It's not the first time McKenzie has had to make tough disciplinary decisions this year.

In September, winger James O'Connor was stood down and later sacked over an incident at Perth airport.

Kurtley Beale and O'Connor were also spotted eating fast food at 4am, in the lead up to a crucial test against the British and Irish Lions.

Former Wallaby, and Fairfax sports writer, Peter Fitzsimons says it's clear the team still has a culture problem.

PETER FITZSIMONS: I'm primarily, my main reaction is simply gobsmacked. That you can have a team that's won one in three matches this year about to play the match of its life to save the tour, to salvage the year, to do three days in a biddy, head out onto the town.

When you have half the squad heading out on a Tuesday night, some not getting back until 4:30 am, I just simply don't get it.

LUCY CARTER: What do you think Ewan McKenzie should do from now on?

PETER FITZSIMONS: It actually needs the senior players, the senior players are the ones that set the tone, to say are you out of your freaking minds, what the hell are you doing?

And yet, in this case, one of the most senior, Adam Ashley-Cooper's right there in the middle of it.

LUCY CARTER: Does the team need to be banned from drinking?

PETER FITZSIMONS: I don't know. There's something rotten in the heart of Texas there. There's something wrong in the middle of the culture that half the team could go and Robbie Deans was criticised for allowing James O'Conner and Kurtley Beale to play even though they were out at 4.30 am just before the Lions test. And there was some sense that Ewan McKenzie was the one that was going to become the disciplinarian. Well Robbie Dean's never had a problem this big.